


Come From The Heart

by Betray802



Category: Magnificent Seven (TV)
Genre: Gen, Humor, Sports
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-04
Updated: 2012-11-04
Packaged: 2017-11-17 17:18:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/554024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Betray802/pseuds/Betray802
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Believing in loyalty sometimes is fulfilled, after all. (Written by a New York Yankees fan who is left to wonder ... What just happened here?)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Come From The Heart

"You've got to sing sometimes Like you don't need

`The money` `love sometimes`

`Like you'll never be hurt`   
`You've got to dance dance `

`Dance` `like nobody's watching`  
`It's gotta come from `

`The heart` `if you `

`Want it to work."`  
  
` _'Come From The Heart'_` ` Kathy Mattea`  
` _'Willow In The Wind'_` ` Mercury 1989`  
`********************`  
  
 **`October 2003`**  
  
` As Aaron Boone's home run went sailing off into the left field stands, J.D.` `collapsed into a sobbing heap on the floor, his half-drunk Sam Adams spilling` `onto the carpet. Shaking his head, Buck bent over and picked the kid up,` `slinging J.D. over his shoulder in a fireman's hold. They disappeared down the` `hallway as Josiah returned from the kitchen with a damp cloth.`  
  
`"So the Sox lose again, and I'm another year older. You know, I really` `hope they do break the Curse before I die."`

`"So quit gittin’ shot, maybe? Come on, Ezra, turn on _SportsCenter_ , I` `wanta see th’ Stars score." Vin was rooting through the detritus on the coffee` `table,` `looking to see if there was any chips and salsa left worth bothering` `with.`  
  
`"I wasn't the last one in the hospital, Brother Vin."`  
  
`Finding what he was looking for Vin sat back, scowling as a Star went down under a pile of San Jose Shark sweaters. "That wasn't work-related."`  
  
                           `~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + *`  
  
` **Sometime during the summer, 2004 ...**`  
  
` The screen door slammed and J.D. zoomed into view, panting and sweaty, with` `more than the beginnings of a sunburn. Of course, J.D. could get burned under` `the fluorescent lights at the office, so that he was approaching the shade of` `a just-about-done lobster under the clear blue mountain sky of Chris's place` `wasn't surprising. He yanked up the long tail of his Patriots Super Bowl` `T-shirt – he always bought T-shirts that looked like they'd be a better fit on` `Buck – and used it to wipe his face before peering at the TV. "What's up?"`  
  
`Vin was pinned prey on the couch thanks to a bootlegger named Bossange,` `who hadn't taken kindly to having his operation busted up. Vin's internal` `magnet had attracted three bullets. "ESPN. One o’ th’ specials fer th’ 25th` `anniversary."`  
  
`On the screen, a scruffy-looking Barry Pepper wearing a Yankees cap was` `grinning into the camera.` `"Did you know that studies have proven that people with a strong` `attachment to their chosen team have better psychological health overall? It's` `true!` `*Grin* Well, except for late October in the Greater Boston Area but, well,` `you know ... " Barry walked off camera, then ducked back in, grinning again.` `"Kidding!"`  
  
`There was a throw pillow on the couch that Buck had gotten Chris for his` `birthday, as a gag gift. It read, _'You'll always be my best friend, you know_` _` too much!`_`' Vin wasn't surprised as it went flying at the TV. "Ha-ha-ha, Mr.` `Smart-Ass. We'll see who's laughing this October."`  
  
`A bellow came from outside. "Hey, J.D.? Thought you was gettin’ the` `beers!"`  
  
`"Yeah, yeah, keep your jeans on, Buck. You want somethin' long as I'm in` `here, Vin?"`  
  
`"Cain't, pain meds. Wait, is there any o’ th’ Livewire I brought up last` `weekend left?"`  
  
                              `~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + *`  
  
` **September ...**`  
  
` "I just can't find a way to beat them. I mean, I don't know what to do,` `except to tip my cap and call the Yankees my daddies."`  
  
`"Buck, GRAB HIM!" Chris's shout preceded a desperate scuffle between the` `couch and the TV, as Buck tried to keep J.D. from throwing a side table through` `the TV screen, following Pedro Martinez's self-derogatory comment. After` `several minutes of "Catch ‘is arm!" and "Ya got ‘is other leg?" and "Damn,` `he's right quick, ain't he?", Ezra's drawl flowed over the room.`  
  
`"Really, Mr. Dunne, such displays of temper are most unbecoming."`  
  
`"Says the man whose Braves have been in the playoffs every year for the` `past fourteen. Last time the Braves didn't make it I was still in grade` `school." J.D. panted and squirmed, but Buck, Nathan and Josiah weren't turning` `loose` `for anything.`  
  
`"And if they make it this year it will be a miracle, I assure you. The` `breaking up of the Assassin Squad is surely a sign of the impending` `Apocalypse."`  
  
`Nathan shook his head from his position behind and to one side of J.D.,` `where he held the younger man in a half-nelson. "Ya all goin' down this year.`  `Armageddon's not stoppin' St. Louis now. And no!" As Ezra perked into a` `devilish grin. "I ain't puttin' money on it!"`  
  
                                  `~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + * ~ + *`  
  
` **October ...**`  
  
` It started after the Red Sox beat Anaheim in the division games. At first` `it wasn't really noticeable, given J.D.'s naturally optimistic personality and` `active nature. Besides, he always got a little extra-jumpy this time of` `year, at least until Boston performed their annual swan dive. After that, he` `did his best impression of Eeyore until the sugar rush from the Halloween candy` `kicked in.`  
  
`Knowing the Sox had once again drawn the Yankees in the league series` `after the Yanks eliminated Oakland, Chris braced himself for the usual crash,` `especially after the Sox went down 3 games to none. No team had ever come back` `from a three games to none deficit, and Gonillo from Tech Support had made a` `point of sending J.D. a e-mail concerning a factoid he'd seen after` `_SportsCenter_ one night, which claimed that no team whose city hosted the` ` Democratic` `National Convention had ever won the World Series that year. Chris hadn't been` `surprised to see Gonillo's VW Sirocco being hauled out of the garage on a` `flatbed truck later that day, and when Travis came around asking questions,` `he'd` `begged ignorance.`  
  
`Then Boston came back. In two games that stretched into the wee hours and` `had J.D. chugging Mountain Dew like it was water and propping his eyelids up` `with two by fours, David Ortiz gave the Red Sox faithful reason to hope.`  `Casey just laughed when J.D. called her and told her that if they ever had kids,` `the first one was going to be named David, no matter what.`  
  
`The National League games weren't a problem. Ezra, Nathan and Vin traded` `the same $50 back and forth over the course of two weeks, accompanied by` `good-natured insults and mock snarling. What was there to worry about? If the` `Yankees won, the National League team – which really looked like it was going` `to be the Cardinals – would lose. If the Red Sox made it, the Cards would win.`  `Rooting for your team was fine, but there was no need to get so stressed` `about it. And as often as their internal magnets attracted flying pieces of` `metal, neither Ezra nor Vin were all that inclined to antagonize Nathan in any` `case.`  
  
`"They gotta go back ta th’ Stadium, J.D. Th’ Sox got ‘bout as much` `chance as a minnow swallerin’ a whale in th’ Stadium." Vin shoved a $20 at` `Ezra` `with a muttered, "Screw ya, see if I bother next time yer yappin' in yer` `mike fer help." Ezra pocketed the bill with a great white shark's toothy smile` `and a pleasant, "Always such a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Tanner. I do look` `forward to the Cowboys' future this season."`  
  
`"Nope, the Yankees are cooked. I got a real good feeling this year."`  
  
`"You sure that's not the scrambled eggs from this morning, kid? I really` `think those eggs might've been in the fridge a while too long." Buck took` `one sip of his coffee and choked. "Jeez, Vin! I thought I told ya to quit` `usin' the old motor oil outta your Jeep to make the coffee!"`  
  
`Vin rolled his eyes and barked like a seal. "Hey, Cowboy? Did he` `complain this much when y'all was in th’ teams?"`  
  
`"Worse. J.D., you drink more than a six-pack of that Code Red today, I'm` `chaining you to your desk and making you do this month's financial reports."`  
  
`"I think we oughtta glue his pants t’th’ chair." Nathan offered. "He` `keeps up like he's been doin', we're gonna be peelin’ ‘im down off th’ dark` `side of Bajor."`  
  
`For the first time since meeting J.D., Chris was grateful for a Game 7 in an` `American League Championship Series. Game 7 was always Boston's downfall.` `The Sox would lose, J.D. would crash until Halloween, and things would go back` `to normal.`  
  
`Only ... the Sox won. For the first time since J.D. Dunne was four years` `old, the Boston Red Sox were going to the World Series. And they were playing` `Nathan's St. Louis Cardinals. Nathan tracked down a toy store that sold` `plush owls and put one on his computer monitor. When Ezra asked why, Nathan` `grinned. "For Bob 'Hoot' Gibson, th’ best pitcher th’ Cards ever had. He beat` `th’ Sox in '67"`  
  
`Game 1 arrived with enough snarky comments between J.D. and Nathan to fill a` `season's worth of _Smallville_ episodes. After Game 2, J.D. left a 24-pack of` ` toilet paper on Nathan's desk, with a note attached that read, _'Crying_` _` Towels.'`_` By Game 3, Chris asked Travis if the regional office in Alaska needed` `a` `medic for temporary assignment, and if the office in Honolulu needed a` `surveillance expert. Anything to get J.D. and Nathan away from each other.`  `Nathan's` `comment that Boston outfielder Johnny Damon looked like a hired thug from a` `cheap Western had incited a near-riot that day, followed by J.D.’s – admittedly risky, given Walker's status as an ex-Colorado Rockie – retort that he was` `surprised Larry Walker didn't need a wheelchair to get around Busch Stadium's` `right field. And that was all before Vin squinted at Nathan, shook his head` `and` `muttered, "Man, yer guys beat th’ Astros ta git in this mess?"`  
  
`And the fact that the New England Patriots had just notched their 21st` `win, against the Jets, wasn't helping. J.D. was flying. The only damper on his` `good mood – and it was a small one – was the continuing lockout in the NHL,` `which kept from him his beloved Bruins. But the NBA preseason brought the` `Celtics.`  
  
`"Ya know if Boston loses t’night, we're gonna have ta check J.D. inta Pueblo. He'll wanta jump off th’ Qwest buildin'. Last year was bad` `enough." Vin stepped off the elevator, grinning as he saw Cuervo the cat` `sprawled` `across the Jeep's hood.`  
  
`"You’re miscounting, Vin. If the Sox lose tonight, it just means the Series is going to Game 5."` `Chris checked the Ram for paw prints as Vin scooped Cuervo off the Jeep,` `scratching his ears before setting him down. _Miaowing_ a farewell the tabby` ` dashed` `off.`  
  
`"Ya sure Inez is gonna let us back in? She looked pretty ticked t’other` `night."`  
  
`"Ezra said he called her up and got things smoothed over." Translation,` `as they all knew: Ezra offered to pay for the damages J.D. and Nathan had` `incurred after an impromptu rasslin' match following Game 3. Chris wasn't` `breathing a word to Buck, but he thought that 'smoothing things over' included Ezra` `taking Inez out to dinner.`  
  
`By the fifth inning, J.D. would have been swinging from the chandelier if` `the Saloon had had one. Johnny Damon's leadoff home run had been an early` `Christmas gift, and Derek Lowe was pitching lights out. Bronson Arroyo and` `Alan` `Embree kept the party rolling, with Manny Ramirez, Orlando Cabrera and David` `Ortiz providing the defense while Trot Nixon padded Damon's homer with a` `two-run double. There was one anxious moment in the ninth when a comeback ball` `went between Keith Foulke's legs, bringing back too many nightmares of the` `endlessly replayed image of the Bill Buckner play from 1986. Though J.D. had` `only` `been four at the time, ESPN Classic seemed to replay that game with a` `demonic enjoyment.`  
  
`And then it happened. The last Cardinal hitter, Edgar Renteria, slapped` `another comeback ball to Foulke, and this time he caught it, breaking to his` `left `off the mound toward first. He flipped to Doug Mientkiewicz, who dashed` `to first and made the last out.`  
  
`It was over.`  
  
`The Curse of the Bambino was broken.`  
  
`The Boston Red Sox were the 2004 World Series Champions.`  
  
`Later, all would agree that the "YYYYYYYEEEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!!!" J.D. let out` `easily beat the similar shouts of victory from Chris and Buck after the` `Broncos had beaten the Green Bay Packers to win the 1998 Super Bowl. The kid` `bought a round for the whole place, even Nathan, who had to admit that the` `Cardinals had been thoroughly outplayed.`  
  
`Josiah sat back chuckling as J.D. bounced around the room hugging and` `backslapping and generally acting like a five-year-old who'd just emptied his` `Halloween treat sack in one sitting – or a twenty-two-year-old whose baseball` `team` `had just won the World Series after an eighty-six year drought.`  
  
`"So now it's over. And surprise, surprise, I lived to see it."`  
  
`"One thing I cannot fathom." Ezra mused. "The rallying cry of the Boston` `faithful has always been, 'Wait 'til next year.' Well, quite clearly next` `year has arrived. So what happens ... next year?"`  
  
`"We get to listen to J.D. gloat all year, that's what."`  
  
`By the time Inez begged last call, 'plowed' was merely a mildly` `descriptive word with little true relevance to J.D.'s physical condition. He` `finally` `passed out just as Buck poured him into Lady's cab.`  
  
`"He's off until Monday, but I expect to see him bright and early Monday` `morning." Chris ordered. Buck grinned.`  
  
`"He'll be there. At least he can't make it from here to Boston and back` `to go to the victory parade."`  
  
`"Yeah, thank God. See you this weekend." Buck tossed Chris a quick` `salute and shifted Lady into gear.`  
  
`Walking back to the Ram, Chris couldn't help but chuckle, thinking about` `the victory party he'd been to after the Broncos win in 1998. He'd woken up` `the next day with his head splitting open, knowing he hadn't been that drunk` `since ... a sudden thought occurred to him as he swung the door open and` `stepped up onto the running board. With a slight grin, he looked up at the` `eclipsing moon. Sarah had been a Red Sox fan.`  
  
`"You wouldn't have had anything to do with this, would you?"`  
  
`A playful breeze danced through the Saloon's parking lot, carrying the` `faint sound of a woman's laughter.`  
  
`"Yeah, I thought so."`  
  
`Inside, Inez looked at the ungodly mess. " _Por favor_ , don't ever let that` `team win again."``

`J.D. showed up Monday morning, all right, wearing a T-shirt bearing the Red` `Sox logo, the World Series Champion logo, and the words _'Now I Can Die In_`` _Peace!'_`` Nathan rolled his eyes.`  
  
`"What ‘bout all those other times ya git hurt?"`  
  
`Grinning, J.D. shrugged. "I would have had to find something to haunt, of` `course."`

 


End file.
